Chinese Entertainment: Becoming a Superstar After a Breakup

"Why are you here?" Shen Ze looked at Gulinaza curiously. On the day of the audition for "Wu Xin: The Monster Killer", he was waiting at the scene when Gulinaza suddenly appeared, patted him on the shoulder, and asked.

"Didn't I say I'd introduce you? Did you think I was joking?" Gulnazar said.

"I mean, could you help me say hello? Who would have thought you'd come today? You're not going to be the lead actress, are you?" Shen Ze asked curiously.

"How could that be? The role was already cast. I just happened to be in Beijing promoting my new movie, so I came to help you out. But don't get your hopes up too high. I can't control the casting process; I don't have that much power," Gulnazar said.

"Understood," Shen Ze said. Even though he had watched "Wu Xin: The Monster Killer" and studied the characters, he didn't have high expectations for the role because of its fame. He just wanted to give it a try since it was a role that could potentially make him a little popular.

His goal was clear: he was aiming for the role of Zhang Xianzong. If he couldn't play it, he wouldn't play it. As for Wuxin the Monster Killer, that role wasn't meant for outsiders.

There's another issue: his status as an artist under Jaywalk Studio might be a bit problematic. Yang Mi is Jaywalk's representative artist, and Jaywalk's success is largely due to her.

However, her feud with Tangren Media was quite a hot topic a few years ago, and whether Cai Yinong had any objections to her status as an artist under Jaywalk Studio was also crucial.

Originally, he only wanted a role in "Wu Xin: The Monster Killer," but after finding out so many gossip and rumors, he was a little troubled. Fortunately, he had a clear understanding of himself: if he succeeded, great; if not, he'd move on to the next project.

"Zhang Xianzong, you've even written a character biography, you've really put in the effort." This audition was special. Gulinaza took Shen Ze directly to the audition room. After waiting for a while, a person with a full head of white hair and wearing large black-rimmed glasses arrived.

Shen Ze also put in a lot of effort. He combined the novel with the TV series he remembered to create a short biography for Zhang Xianzong. He had been preparing for this ever since he saw online that "Wu Xin: The Monster Killer" was going to be adapted into a TV series.

Furthermore, he was very self-aware and didn't try too hard. This was a lead role, and unless it was a company production, he might have a tiny chance. But if it was a production by Tangren Media, it was 100% impossible for an artist from another company to play the lead.

Even if "Wu Xin: The Monster Killer" didn't have a large budget and was a web series specially made for Sohu, they wouldn't just give the lead role to anyone else. But Zhang Xianzong was very skillful in his approach.

"Ambitious, ruthless and decisive, he is well-versed in the ways of survival in chaotic times. He acts ruthlessly but still has a bottom line. After meeting Yue Qiluo, he completely loses his sharpness and becomes humble, infatuated, loyal and forbearing. He is completely devoted to Yue Qiluo and does not expect anything in return. Even knowing that she is a ruthless demon, he is willing to give everything and protect her with his own body. He is a tragic villain who hides tenderness in evil."

Looking at Shen Ze's character summary, Li Guoli thought more highly of Shen Ze. He had seen many celebrities, but few had such a deep understanding of their characters. If this was his own summary, he had put a lot of effort into it.

"Take a turn around, let me see. I'll give you a scene. You act as if that's Yue Qiluo, the scene of the first time you see her. Five minutes, okay?" Li Guoli said. Shen Ze got up and turned around. Looking at his height, Li Guoli was very satisfied and said, and Shen Ze nodded.

An audition should look like an audition. Although this time was different from the past, it's easy to tell that Gulnazar really put in the effort. Even when Zhao Ruoyao took him to audition, it wasn't this easy.

A few minutes later.

"Whose are you? Why are you here all alone?" The voice trembled slightly, very faintly.

"Come with me." His tone turned cold again. After all, Shen Ze had studied for several years. To say that his acting skills were so good that everyone could empathize with him would be bragging. But knowing the character's background and having seen others act in the role, his performance was naturally much more effective than others' mere imagination.

It was just two lines, but it conveyed all the necessary emotions, and Li Guoli seemed quite satisfied. Although it was a bit formulaic, it was an audition, not a film shoot, so it was reasonable that the emotions weren't fully integrated.

"Good job, keep it up." After saying a few words of praise, the person left. Gulnazar went out to say a few more words, and then they left together.

"My task is complete. I don't know if it will be successful, but I heard from Director Li that he is very satisfied with you. We'll wait for his notification. He did praise you for your excellent understanding of the character," Gulnazar said as she left the room.

"Alright, are you busy? I'll treat you to dinner," Shen Ze said.

"No rush, we're just waiting for this," Gulnazar said with a smile.

"Thank you so much, I didn't expect you to come in person." Shen Ze and Gulinaza sat facing each other at a Xinjiang restaurant.

"You're welcome. This place is great. Did your boyfriend bring you here? I've never been here before," Gulnazar said, inevitably mentioning Dilraba in her conversation.

"You don't need to do this. You keep bringing me up even when I'm not here, making it seem like I'm incredibly popular. If you keep doing this, I'll really think you've been secretly in love with me all this time," Shen Ze said.

"You're being a bit shameless. To be honest, I'm really looking forward to seeing if you can land this role. I wonder what she'll do if she finds out I helped her out," Gulnazar said.

"Don't cause trouble, she supports my audition," Shen Ze explained.

"Hmm, are you sure she didn't let you audition because she knew you were just wasting your time? Let's not talk about this anymore, or you'll start overthinking things."

"Although you're a bit inhuman, I really shouldn't have gotten involved in your relationship back then. I was angry with you at the time, but you really weren't a man. You clearly did something wrong, so what's wrong with letting me vent my anger?" Gulnazar said.

"You're being a little too frank," Shen Ze said.

"I'm about to graduate and enter the workforce. Several years have passed. Although you've taken up a lot of my time these past few years, we were classmates after all. Let's talk things out," Gulnazar said.

"That would be great, you're quite open-minded," Shen Ze said with a smile.

"You're more open-minded. I actually envy you a little. Why aren't you in a hurry? Back in college, everyone was trying every means to find connections and groups, but you don't seem to be in a hurry at all," Gulnazar asked curiously.

"No, look how many groups I tried before I signed with the company last year," Shen Ze said.

"Really? Then I was wrong," Gulnazar said. She wasn't wrong; she could see from many details that Shen Ze was just going through the motions of auditioning. If he were really in a hurry, he would have been running around to various venues by now.

The two talked a lot, and Gulinaza really found that feeling she had before going to university. In fact, in her mind, even if she and Shen Ze were not boyfriend and girlfriend, they should have become the good friends they are now because of their mutual encouragement. But because Shen Ze was a bad person, everything was messed up.

However, she was genuinely curious about what Dilraba would think if Shen Ze really joined the cast, but whether it would work out was hard to say.